Image Gallery: First Impressions of the HP iPAQ 910 Business Messenger

Summary: HP used to have the greatest Pocket PC devices, but it has been a while since they had some high quality devices. The new HP iPAQ 910 Business Messenger is the new high end device that packs all the wireless features you want in a form factor similar to a BlackBerry Curve and Motorola Q9.

HP used to have the greatest Pocket PC devices, but it has been a while since they had some high quality devices. The new HP iPAQ 910 Business Messenger is the new high end device that packs all the wireless features you want in a form factor similar to a BlackBerry Curve and Motorola Q9.

HP has some great new packaging and did a good job of keeping the box for the 910 compact and attractive.

The inside cover of the iPAQ 910 box clearly shows what all the buttons are for in three different languages.

The box contains the device, the battery, a USB to miniUSB cable, A/C adapter, and wired headset. This prototype/test unit did not come with any manuals or CD that you will find in the full retail box.

There are two ways to charge the device included with this evaluation package, a standard travel adapter and a USB to A/C adapter dongle.

The leather carrying case came with my evaluation unit, but is an additional accessory not included in the retail package.

HP includes a whopping 1940 mAh battery with the iPAQ 910. I think this is the largest standard battery I have seen in a mobile phone and will have to test to see how long it lasts with a 3G connection.

As you can see the battery takes up a large area of the back of the device. The SIM card fits down towards the bottom under the battery.

The back cover has a soft touch feel and as you can see in this photo the stylus is actually mounted to the battery cover and not inside the device casing.

The HP iPAQ 910 includes a 3 megapixel camera with flash and self-portrait mirror.

This shot of three touch screen devices shows how different they can be when it comes to form factor. The Diamond is very small and compact, the iPAQ 910 is large with an integrated QWERTY keyboard, and the iPhone is all touch with a larger display.

The device fits well in your hand, but does feel a bit thick compared to some of the latest and greatest devices. It is very solid and has a classy look.

The HP iPAQ 910 is an attractive entry in the QWERTY keyboard devices.

The keyboard has a glossy black finish and the keys are interesting with a half-cylinder type of form factor. The backlight is bright and every character is easy to distinguish.

The traditional soft keys, send and end buttons, and OK and Start menu appear along with a calendar and email button above the keyboard.

There is an integrated speaker above the HP icon and the indicator light is to the left of the logo to let you know the status of your device.

You can see the stylus silo close to the camera button on the bottom right side of the device. The stylus is actually quite long and feels great in your hand.

I was pleasantly surprised to see an actual scroll wheel on the upper right side of the iPAQ 910. An OK button can be found below the scroll wheel.

The volume control button is located on the upper left side with the Voice Command activation button below it.

There are covers for the microSD card slot and miniUSB port on the bottom left side. There is no standard headset jack on the iPAQ 910, but you get an HP wired headset in the box that connects to the miniUSB port.

The power button and soft reset button are located along the top. There is also a covered connection port for an external GPS antenna.

There is nothing along the bottom of the 910. There is hard plastic covering around the device with soft touch on the back and glossy black on the front.

Matthew Miller started using a mobile devices in 1997 and has been writing news, reviews, and opinion pieces ever since. He is a co-host with GigaOM's Kevin Tofel on the MobileTechRoundup podcast and an author of three Wiley Companion series books. Matthew started using mobile devices with a US Robotics Pilot 1000 and has owned over 200 d...
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Disclosure

Matthew is a professional naval architect by day and a mobile gadgeteer at all other times. He purchases his own devices and then sells them on eBay or Swappa to buy more. Many other devices are sent for review on a 30-day loaner basis and then returned to the carrier or manufacturer. If any are provided as &#8220;long term loaner units&#8221 this will be clearly disclosed in his reviews.